Brief Reflection on Oil Exploration in Nagalim
On being convinced that exercising our rights over the land and its resources, traditional practices and customary law, in letter and spirit bringing into realization the 13th Amendment of the constitution of India, this step is a milestone in the tribal development in India and globally as well as significant for the Naga people. The state of Nagaland came into existence following a Presidential declaration by Dr. S Radhakrishnan, the President of India in 1962 before the Naga People, means Article 371A has received presidential assent and proclamation which establishes the fact that it is fully ratified.
1. The Nagaland State carved out of the erstwhile Part B Tribal Areas of Assam State and Tuensang Area bifurcated from the North East Frontier Agency (NEFA) forms the Scheduled areas.
2. The Constituent Assembly debates of November 4, 1948 clearly spell out the duty of the Governments (State and Central) to protect the land and the rights of the tribal people.
3. Genesis of Article 371A that structured the political stature of Nagaland State was the result of the agreement between Naga Tribes and the Union of India.
4. By giving the Nagaland State Legislature the right to take decision on matters relating to the customary laws practices and right over the land, did not spell out the modus operandi for the state Legislature in doing so.
5. No.4 implies that Nagaland State Legislature shall constitute a body of the respective tribal heads that shall take decisions on such matters that shall give recommendation to the politically elected legislatures to do so.
6. Any declaration order pertaining to the provisions of the Article 371 A, relating to land and its resources passed by the Chairman of the Village Council shall be the law which stands unchallenged by any authority.
The Govt. or the legislature on being elected democratically or on having the absolute majority does not mean that the government can undertake any policy that is against the interest of the existing practices and traditions especially on a matter concerning the tribal society, though such a decision is taken by a legislature fully constituted with the tribes alone. There was no state government elected with such manifestos in our knowledge that shall take the rights of the tribal people away or such a government that can make a ruling over the customary laws and practices. Therefore, the Nagaland Land Reforms Bill empowering the state to acquire any land has no legal validity, and therefore lies totally with the final authority of the Gaon Burrah whether to yield to the state government or not.
Further, Nagaland state legislature is empowered to take such decisions on the matters relating to Naga traditions where no act of the parliament of India has any binding. Under this Article, the elected political system, though may or may not be of Naga tribes in constitution, do not represent the traditional or customary practicians or tribal chiefs of Gaon Burrahs, but are of different political ideology and configuration. So the State legislature being devoid of any House or superior body of the traditional systems and customary practices cannot take any decisions on such matters concerning land rights or other customary laws.
Moreover, the Naga political issue is being discussed with the Union of India and collective leadership, and an interlocutor is appointed by the Union of India, which means the state government has no authority over any such matters on which the discussions are going on, and can only act as legal body to legitimize any action that the tribals do as per their customs of the traditions and thereby in this case too the decision of the Village Council and the Gaon Burrah is the final word.
As in the case of oil exploration and illegal extraction at Changpang village under Wokha District, the state government was instrumental in taking away the natural resources of the people and the Act of the ONGC in this case can be considered as THEFT – or STEALING OF RESOURCE. As it was a closely guarded operation and everything was taken away in closed containers and the details also being withheld, either the state government or ONGC or both were creating a situation of injury.
This matter is a sensitive issue, which the state and ONGC treated in a casual and mechanical way. There is no record whereby the Government officials concerned nor the company gave opportunity for the concerned Lotha tribe, particularly the Changpang land owners to have a role in the process and for 14 years, the company failed to even come out with the facts and figures. And we firmly believe that ONGC cannot be trusted, even the official records of the 20 years be scrutinized to look into the misappropriations. We find that ONGC is keeping all records confidential so that its officials can enter into unholy trade practices or as a protective sheath for the undoing of its officials.
To conclude, under the establishment of Naga customary practices, the entire operations by the concerned Naga tribe can be under their control, unchallenged and without any interferences.
Samuel Medaliang
Concerned Naga Citizen
